My best boss was known to everyone in the office as the Mosey Man, which in hindsight was a gross misnomer.
The Cambridge Dictionary definition of “mosey” is to walk or go slowly, usually without a special purpose, which he appeared to do regularly, hands in pockets.
But I quickly figured that the afternoon hour of his wandering was possibly his richest of the day, with vital purpose.
It went like this.
The hour was not regular, so you had no idea when he was suddenly going to stroll in and, gulp, drift up to your desk and commence a conversation.
But without fail he would talk to everyone in the course of a month, no mean task in what was then a large, riotous (and respectable) broadsheet daily newspaper office. And he would illustrate he was respectfully paying attention, not only to your work, but to your opinions. He would reflect and return to subjects and if he felt your thoughts had merit he would take them on board.
He wandered off with fresh ideas and we all went about of work with the sense of being valued. Bingo.
The seven principles of admirable business ethics – be trustful, keep an open mind, meet obligations, have clear documents, become community involved, maintain accounting control and be respectful – are points addressed on the SME site all the time, rightly, for the personal and business benefits of applying them (restful nights, clear consciences and
SUCCESS) are our collective goals.
In the Mosey Man’s case he applied these inside the office as well as outside, working hard to talk and listen to colleagues and customers, to glean ideas. He not only kept his mind open in this way but encouraged those around him to do likewise.
We are a micro team of three (two in Spain, one in England). Hardly the Daily Planet newspaper office but that doesn’t matter. It is sometimes a struggle to break away from the grind, tail-chasing and the computer to begin “what if…” conversations, to nail issues and refresh understands, but they are invariably the most fruitful, inspiring and reinforcing of times, when we can also take stock of ethics, ambitions, needs, life, the universe and everything.
Talking of which….
To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity. So said the great Douglas Adams, the Galaxy’s hitchhiker.
